Training & Development Plan for Budget Analyst Onboarding

Introduction

In every company, training is always a vitally important function of the human resources department, and in this particular case, extra attention needs to be given to the newest employees who have been hired. The urgency stems partly from the importance of the position: budget analyst. The person hired as a budget analyst carries an enormous responsibility — both for fiscal reasons that are readily apparent and for internal operational reasons as well.

The Need for Training and Organizational Readiness

Why is the training needed? In recent months, there has been a noticeable gap between the hiring of a new employee and the level of competency that employee demonstrates on the job. In other words, the company has not been satisfied with the time it takes to bring a new employee up to full speed on work that is essential to the organization.

What is the organization's readiness for providing this training? This organization needs to re-tool its approach to training and development. It is quite possible that our HR management team itself needs some upgrading in order to ensure we are hiring only the most competent people — and that may be the genesis of the problem.

In Mary Tanke's book Human Resources Management for the Hospitality Industry, the author advises human resource managers that "due to the very high turnover ratios" in the hospitality industry, screening applicants correctly has taken on "a new importance" (Tanke, 2000, p. 119). Tanke believes many people who do not produce as expected "should never have been hired in the first place" (119). While she is speaking about the hospitality industry, her points apply to any industry. It is very likely that our HR group needs some fresh training in the craft of hiring the right people for the right positions.

Objectives of the Training Program

What are the objectives of the training program? First, the HR management group should upgrade its application form. The organization is currently using a generic form — one of those ubiquitous documents that serve minimum-wage workplaces as well as more advanced positions. In this case, the new application form should be specific to the duties and responsibilities of the budget analyst role.

The objectives of the training program, once HR is confident they have hired the most appropriate candidate — not necessarily the one with the most experience or the most impressive references — are to bring the new hire up to speed within one week of orientation and structured learning. Effective human resource management demands that onboarding be deliberate, role-specific, and measurable.